They live just a couple of floors apart from each other in the same condo.

As teammates, they practice against each other, something they used to do for hours as kids on an outdoor rink in frosty Saskatoon.

Had things worked out, all these things would be taking place in Toronto for Luke and Brayden Schenn.

Instead, this sibling reunion fittingly is going on in the City of Brotherly Love.

Oh, what might have been.

On Sunday, Luke had his first official practice as a Philadelphia Flyer. In the process, during the line rush drills, one of the forwards who closed in on him was younger brother Brayden.

Had recently fired Brian Burke found a way to pull it off, the Schenns would both have been Leafs back in 2009. That’s what the bombastic Irishman wanted. Alas, like so many aspects of the recently terminated Burke era, things didn’t go as planned.

At the time, Brayden was projected to be a top-5 pick in the NHL draft. Had the Leafs not been victorious in their final game of the regular season, they would have had a shot at the younger Schenn. Instead, after Burke’s efforts to trade for the No. 5 pick with the Los Angeles Kings went for naught, the Leafs settled for Nazim Kadri at No. 7.

“We had a good idea the Leafs were interested in him,” Luke Schenn recalled Sunday evening during a phone interview from Philadelphia. “In fact, had we lost our last game to Ottawa, we would have had the fifth selection. But we ended up beating the Senators and falling to the No. 7 spot. I think Boyd Devereaux scored a hat trick in that game.

“It would have been so cool if we could have been in Toronto together. Things just didn’t work out that way.”

They certainly have in Philadelphia. And the Schenn brothers couldn’t be happier. That was evident by the excitement in Luke’s voice.

“It’s been awesome,” said Luke, who was picked fifth overall by the Leafs in 2008. “The entire Flyers organization has been amazing to me. And, obviously, being on the same team as Brayden is so special, It’s obviously something we’ve dreamed about.

“When the Leafs drafted me and then the Kings picked Brayden the following year, we thought that, when we were older, that perhaps we’d get the chance to play together down the road. But for it to happen this quick and to see one another every day, it’s just so cool.”

Given all the hype surrounding Luke in his four seasons in Toronto, it is surprising to realize that he is just 23 years old. This was a kid who many predicted would be the future captain of the Leafs, pretty lofty expectations for a young defenceman who was still learning the pro game.

He certainly struggled at times, although his development certainly wasn’t helped by coach Ron Wilson’s penchant of repeatedly putting him in the doghouse. And whenever the trade deadline came up, Luke would hear his name mentioned in the scuttlebutt.

For a number of years, Burke insisted he would never trade Schenn. Finally, during the 2012 draft in Pittsburgh last June, Burke gave in, dealing Luke to the Flyers for talented young forward James Van Riemsdyk.

“I wasn’t surprised,” Luke said. “In fact, I had heard a rumour about that trade back in January — me for (JVR). I was being asked about trades five times a week up until the trade deadline so I was used to the talk. It’s part of life in Toronto. Mats Sundin went through it, everyone went through it.

“When it did go through, I couldn’t believe it was to Philly. The first person I called was my brother.”

Looking back, Luke Schenn loved his time as a Leaf. In the process, he shot down the notion that there is too much pressure in Toronto for the franchise to ever succeed.

“I don’t buy that,” he said. “If you have success there, you are treated like royalty. It is a special place.

“To the Toronto fans, I say thank you and hang in there. This team will succeed one day. I only wish it would have happened when I was there.”

BURKE FIRING SHOCKED LUKE SCHENN

Luke Schenn was just leaving the Philadelphia Flyers practice rink last week when he heard that the Maple Leafs had fired Brian Burke.

Count him among those who were shocked at the news.

“I almost couldn’t believe it,” Schenn said in a phone interview on Sunday night. “I was stumped like everyone else.

“He did a lot of things for that organization and for the city. I just wonder about the timing. Why didn’t they at least give him until the end of this 48-game season?”

Schenn holds absolutely no grudge against Burke for trading him to the Flyers last June for James Van Riemsdyk.

“He treated me awesome,” Schenn said. “We had a great relationship. We even went to Afghanistan together for a few days to visit the troops.

“He’s a very loyal guy. If you play for him, he will defend you and look out for you at all times.”

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